Drying apparatus



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

D. WQ ANDERSON. DRYING APPARATUS.

E1n-511,184, Patented Deo. 19, 18.93.

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(No Model.) l Z'Sheets-Sheet 2. D. WANDERSQN. DRYING APPARATUS.

Patented Dee. 19,1893.

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UNITED STATES PATENT Freins.

`DAVID WILEY ANDERSON, OF` RICHMOND, VIRGINIA.

DRYING APPAaATUs.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 51 1,184, dated December 19, i893.

A `Application 'filed March 12, 1,892.

To 1f/Ztl whom it -maiy concern: y

Be it known that I, DAVID WILEY. ANDER- SON, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing `at Richmond, in the county of Henrico and State of Virginia, have invented certain new and usel ul Improvements in Drying Apparatus, of which the following isa specification, reference being had therein to the accom panying drawings.

This invention relates to'improvements in mechanisms for drying,it pertaining more especially to mechanisms of the sort intended for treating materials that will sustain a very highlieat without destruction of their valuable qualities, and to which the material is fed rapidly in large quantities.

Figu rel is aside elevation of a mechanism embodying my improvement. Fig. 2 isan end view of the same. Fig. 3 is a vertical cross section on the line .fr-m, Fig. l. Fig. 4 is a horizontal section on the line y-y, Fig. l. Fig. 5 is a Vhorizontal section on the line ,eL-e, Figs. l and 3. Fig. 6 is a vertical cross section on the linea', m,Fig. 2. Figs. 7 and 8 show details.

In the draWingsA A indicate lire chambers, of which any suitable number may be used, and each of which may, so far as coni cerns the details of construction, be of any suitable character. The products ofcombustion pass from each fire chamber through a throat or passage way a and thence through comparatively long, narrow fines B B, there being preferably several of the latter communicating with each throat ga.l They extend across and under the drying chamherproper,

` and at their opposite ends communicate with ff tom wall or floor of the drying chamber.

a collecting iiue or passage b, which in turn communicates with the stack D that withdraws the product of combustion from all of the furnaces and dues B. y The top or upper Walls of these fines B B constitute also the bot# This bottom is constructed of a series of conveyer troughs F2 which are tightly joined together so as to form a substantially continuous floor of a corrugated form in section. Itis as a Whole indicated by the letter F and the preferred details of construction will he herein below fully set forth.

` vIn each of the troughs F2 provided as aforesaid there is arranged a conveyer E mounted sein no. 424,662. or@ man.)

upon a shaft e. Of these conveyers there may be any suitable number. parallel to each other and are mounted on lines transverse to fines B, so that the products of combustion are compelled to pass across and below the whole series of conveyer troughs. The shafts e e are mounted in bearings s-e3 supported upon frames Hand H at the sides of the apparatus. In the side wall of the drying chamber proper, there are apertures or openings, there being two of these opposite to each other for each conveyer E. The conveyers extend preferably somewhat beyond the side wall at the side where They are placed' the feeding of the material is effectedand to or somewhat through that wall at which the delivery is caused.

At e' each con veyer shaft e is provided with a Worm wheel, the worm wheels on the Several conveyer' shafts being in line with each other, and Y all simultaneously actuated by means of a worm shaft. G provided with aseries of worms g respectively corresponding to the said Wheels e.

At the feed end of the conveyers there is a supply chamber K, or a series of chambers communicating with the couveyer troughs. Above the feeding chamber or chambers there is an initial feeding hopper L. rlhis, at the betteln communicates with a conveyer trunk or trough N containing the couveyer M mounted upon the shaft im.. This shaft receives power from the shaft G through the chain gearing at G', G2, G3, the power being imparted Vto the whole mechanism through the belt wheel at G4.

The couveyers'deliver the material into a trunk or trough at N supported on the framing at H', there being in this trough a conveyeri mounted upon a shaft fn.. Power is conveyed to shaft n, from one of the conveyer shafts e through the chain gearing at e4, the shaft e5, and the bevel gearing at e5, the gearing being so speeded that the collecting and withdrawing conveyer N shall rotate much more rapidly than those at E.V

Above the conveyors E E the walls of the drying apartment F are so constructed that `the said apartment shall taper or narrow upwardly, it communicating with a fine at wherein an exhaust fan O of sufficient capacity is placed.

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The preferred material for and manner of constructing and arranging the parts along which the material to be dried is conveyed are as follows. The floor F of the drying apartment, as above said is of a zigzag or corrugated shape in cross section the depth and other dimensions of each of the depressions being such that it is adaptedl to serve as a trough, as at F2 for a con veyer E. As shown each of these depressions or troughs is formed of a bottom f f and two side parts ffz. These are all formed of tiling, fire clay, terra cotta, or other similar and suitably refractory material, capable of sustaining au exceedingly high heat without rapid destruction. The series of troughs is built up of sections of the selected refractory material, each section being shaped in the way shown in Figs. 7 and 8. The bottom part f of each trough has grooves f3, and the side walls f f2 have tongues at f4 adapted to fit in said grooves, and to thus provide a joint suiiciently firm to secure the parts together, and sufficiently tight to prevent the escape of material at the lines ofjunction. At the upper ends or edges the sections are so shaped as to interlock and fit snugly, as shownin Fig. 7. Theside piece fis rabbeted atf, and the side piecef2 of an adjacent trough is grooved at f5 to receive the shoulder part of the adjacent section atf7.

Asis well known the pipes, metal surfaces, and other supports for the material which have been used in drying mechanisms have been the principle source of loss and trouble, owing to the fact that they so rapidly burn out when subjected to the exceedingly high heat which it is desired to apply when treating many sorts of material. The supporting floor, or con veyer troughs herein provided are free from this trouble as it is practically impossible to destroy them by the heat generated in the tire chamber.

From an examination of the drawings, it will be seen that peculiar features of construction are incident to the parts above described and which enable me to cheaply construct a large and durable drier capable of receiving an exceedingly high heat and im# parting the same to what is practically an extensive sheet of material. If one of the dimensions and capacity of this shown were constructed upon any of the numerous earlier plans known to me, it would be so expensive as to prohibit its introduction into use for treating common materials like sand, clay, marl,r phosphates, dto., which must be handled by cheap mechanismsin large quantities. It will be seen that the vertical walls B of the fire fines, not only act to distribute the products of combustion uniformly over the whole of the extensive drying floor, but moreover, that they act as the holders for the fiat earthen-ware or tile plates which are laid directly upon them so that no metal whatever, is required at places where itcan beimpinged upon by the highly heated currents. .By disposing the parts so that I can use fiat tiles and support them on the flue walls, and so shaping them vthat I can form a flame-tight flooring or series of conveyer chambers, I can obtain at a very low price all the necessary materials for this part of the apparatus. These at tiles are so arranged as to present only a relatively thin partition between the flame chamber and the material, the products of combustion being able to impart heat in the angular spaces between the conveyers to the upper part of the mass of material as well as to the bottom portion that rests on the dat sections f.

I am aware `that ores have been roasted by moving them from one spiral conveyer to another, successively in lower horizontal planes, over a tire flue havinga metallic ceiling which supports ordinary brick in solid masses between theconveyers, as is shown in Patent No. 464,103 to OBrien dated December l, 1893,and I do not claim such a construction as of my invention.

I am also aware that grain has been passed through a series of horizontally arranged conveyer chambers formed of metal with numerous perforations adapted to permit the products of combustion to pass through, as shown in Patent No. 40,130 to Sutton and Gibson dated September 29, 1863; and I do not claim any of the features of such a mechanism as of my invention. Y

I also know that it has been proposed to roast ores by passing them through conveyer chambers, successively ina vertical series, each formed with a metallic lining, and in which the fire was formed directly in the conveyer chamber in contact with the material as shown in Patent No. 365,393, to Lord, and such constructions also I disclaim,

I may also say that I do not claim broadly the use of refractory materials as I am aware that they have been used :for a long period in stoves, furnaces, glass pots, coffee roasters, &c.

In order to support the comparatively eloni gated couveyer shafts e, I combine with them a central support J, adapted to carry a series of bearings, which are held by brackets j,

extending down from the cross support J.

The conveyers may each be made in two or more sections, the adjacent ends of the sections being supported by means of such devices as those just described, at J, j, or each.

conveyer shaft may be continued from the bearing e to the bearing e2.

The manner of operating the mechanism above described, and shown in the drawings will be readily understood. The material ,is fed as uniformly as possible to the hopper L, and from this it is carried along the trough N by the conveyerN which distributes it in substantially equal quantities to the several conveyers of the whole series. By the latter it is advanced at the desired speed along the troughs F. The fires in the furnaces atA A, being lighted, the heated products of combustion passing through the ilues B, heat the troughs F constituting the floor F, to a high degree, and as the material (such as phosphate, lnnarl,` clay, dec.) is advanced along the same in a suitably thin: sheet or layer, the moisture therein is heated correspondingly high and is driven out rapidly .therefrom As it rises into the `tapering upper part of the drying chamber, it is rapidly withdrawn therefrom by means of the fan at O. By eX- amining the drawings it will be seen that the feed or supply conveyor also moves at a speed relatively greater than that of the advancing conveyers E, worm gearing, as at G, e', being preferably used, and acting, as will be readily understood, to reducethe speed at which the advancing conveyers E rotate, so that a single conveying device situated outside of the end wall of the drying apartment can be used to Supply all of the advancing conveyors; and as above described a single withdrawing conveyer as at N" can be used for carrying away the material from the whole series of conveyers E. It will also be seen that the fines for the products of combustion are situated transversely to the path of the material that moves through the dry room, and as a result the heat can be more uniformly and equably distributed under the whole mass. These iiues are relatively reduced in cross section,

in comparison with the cross section of the lire chambers, the walls between the flues being constructed of tiling, clay, or suitable refractory earth material. This enables me to retain in proximity to the material to be treated a large amount ot' the heat and prevent its too rapid escape to the stack or chimney; and also enables me to readily provide a support for the sections of tiling which form the conveyer trough in the drying apartment- These sections of tiling, to be readily manufactured cheaply, must be made comparatively small, and therefore frequent supports are required for them, and such supports are at hand when the fines are constructed in the way shown y and described.

various shapes and dimensions Without ma- 1. In an apparatus fordrying clay, sand and i similar materials, the combination of the fire chamber, the smoke exhaust chamber, the re lines having vertical walls, and communicatin g with said chambers, the dat earthen-Ware plates or tiles f resting on said flue walls, the dat plates or tile sections ,11'12 joined flametight at their upper edges and to the plates or sections f at their lower edges,whereby a drying chamber above them is formed and a heating chamber below them extending around the three fiat sides, and a spiral conveyer adjacent to the walls formed of the said plates or tiles, substantially as set forth.

2. In au apparatus fordrying clay, sand,and similar materials, the combination of the fire chambers upon one side, the smoke exhaust chamber on the opposite side, the series of Walls B extending from the tire chamber to the smokechamber and forming a relatively large number of reduced tire iiues and also supporting the heating walls, the dat earthen- Ware plates or tiles f' resting on the tops of said'tlue walls B and arranged transversely thereto, the flat oppositely inclined earthenware plates f, f2, each secured by tongue and groove to the said bottom plates f', andpat their upper edges secured to correspondingly inclined plates by tongue and groove connections, whereby'a series of passage ways is formed with fiat walls constituting `a tight continuous bottom for the drying department, aseries of parallel conveyers E mounted respectively in the said compartments, and a transverse distributing conveyor supplying material 'to all of the aforesaid conveyors simultaneously, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

DAVID WILEY ANDERSON. Witnesses:

WILLIAM J. Weens, ARTHELO R. Boor. 

